A Long Way from Home
by StormLover
Summary: An OneShot that came to mind. A simple story about a man's love for his woman.


She was making her annual month long trip to her home country to visit family and friends. When he expressed his concern regarding her travel arrangements, she turned to him and smiled. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him gently.

"Dear heart, you worry too much," she told him, kissing him again before going back to her suitcase to finish packing.

Instead of replying to her statement, he watched as she closed her suitcase and asked him to set it next to the door.

She left the following day, headed back to the arid climatic of subSahara Africa. She decided, as she did every year, to do the "normal" thing and take a commercial flight. She would be in the air for 19 hours, then travel another 2 hours by land to reach her destination.

"Why not take the minijet?" he asked as he always did, which she always declined.

She just wanted to do the "normal" thing and travel as others did, she would reply. He knew she was looking forward to the trip. It would give her the opportunity to not be a mutant for a month or so, something she looked forward to every year.

He drove her to the airport, dreading her departure. It wasn't that he didn't want her to go, it was just that he was going to miss her. This will be their first time apart for that length of time since they were married last year.

Though he knew the moment was coming, he was hoping that he could dissuade her from traveling commercially. Being her stubborn, steadfast self, she held true to her convictions and her travel arrangements, despite his feelings.

She thought it would be better for them to say their goodbye on the curb. He wanted to go with her as far as he could but he gave in as he had so many times since they started dating. Other than Jubilee, she was the only one on the team who could get away with getting her way. She knew it and exercised her privilege as often as the need arose.

He chuckled at the memories of her pleading with him to do something he wouldn't normally do. It wasn't that he didn't want to do whatever it was that she wanted, he just enjoyed watching her plead her case. He thought she was her cutest when she did so. He would play his role by holding out on making the decision until she kicked it into high gear. Most people didn't see that side of her. She only shared those sides of herself with him behind closed doors. He knew she had a rep to maintain but he enjoyed and appreciated the softer side of her, which over time, had led to a softer side of him.

He drove back to the mansion, the radio tuned to a local station. Deep in thought, the radio served as background music until he heard Ro's flight number.

"This just in folks. Delta Flight 3540 has lost power over the Atlantic Ocean. Reports are coming in from family members of those on board saying that the plane now has one engine and that the crew is trying to get the other three engines working."

"Scratch that," the disc jockey exclaimed, "We've just heard that there has been an explosion on board and the plane is falling from the sky."

Logan pushed the car to its highest sped to reach the mansion in record time. He hopped out and raced to the War Room where the others were watching the footage on the big screen.

"Ro's on that plane. We need to go now," Logan said, not waiting to for a response. He headed for the Blackbird and fired it up. After hearing the door slide close, Logan engaged the thrusters and guided the jet out of the hangar. Hank served as his co-pilot and pulled up the coordinates of Ororo's comlink.

Logan pushed the jet to exceed their normal traveling speed and the engines roared in response. He saw Hank glance at him out of the corner of his eye but Logan wasn't worried about the jet. He was more concerned with finding his wife and making sure she was okay.

Nearing the coordinates, Logan was glad that he switched to stealth mode before leaving the mansion. _As soon as I see her, I'm going to_…Logan thought but the thought died as he flew over the plane wreckage.

Hank sent the image to the internal monitors so that the others could see what he and Logan was seeing. Logan's heart sank at the sight of the flames burning on top of the water. The crash site was surrounded by the U. S. Coast Guard, meaning there was no way for them to get closer without having to answer to the military.

"So what now, sugah?" Rogue asked from her seat next to Gambit. Morph and Kurt sat behind them.

Logan, turning from the monitor, looked at his teammates, his mind racing with thoughts, fighting to stay positive. Realizing that Scott wasn't on the plane with them, he guessed he was the one to call the shots.

"Alright here's the plan," Logan began.

Minutes later, Logan took his seat again after closing the door behind the team. He sat and watched the Coast Guard extinguish the fire.

"My friend, I'm sure Ororo is fine. Why don't we monitor the news so that we can get more information on the crash?" Hank asked.

Deep in thought, Logan didn't hear his friend's question. The sound of the newscaster's voice pulled him from his thoughts and he heard the person say that it was a miracle that everyone on the plane had survived with minor cuts and bruises. "The only person seriously injured was the mutant that saved them all," the newscaster reported, "The Jane Doe as she is being called is a Black woman with short brown hair and hazel eyes. She is listed in serious but stable condition by the Coast Guard physicians. What's this…I'm being told there's a new development. The mutant female has disappeared from the infirmary…"

Logan turned around as the doors of the jet lowered and the team entered, helping a limping Ororo to a seat. Surprisingly, the image inducer she borrowed from the professor was intact.

"Ro," Logan said, making his way over to her and kneeling in front of her. He was vaguely aware of the others as they took their own seats, giving the couple the space they needed. Needing to see his wife, Logan hit the button on the inducer, causing Ororo's disguise to melt away.

"Hi dear heart," Ororo responded, touching his face, wiping away the lone tear that slid down his face, "What took you so long?"

Logan smiled in response, gently touching her face.


End file.
